Are you in the cooler Northern Hemisphere or basking in the sun in the Southern Hemisphere? Either way, why not pause and give yourself the gift of time to rest and relax, maybe read a new book.
It’s a pleasure to welcome author Nancy Cunningham to talk about her new book Crossing the Bridge.
Thank you for joining us- tell us about your book Crossing the Bridge which will be released 1st January 2024. You can pre-order it NOW
1944. Widow Poppy Guilford is fighting to save her farm, the one thing tethering her to her husband—and the legacy promised for their young son. But a devastating secret from her husband’s past threatens to derail her struggle to save the property and keep her son by her side.
Former soldier JB Beaton’s wartime injuries and personal losses have left him with scars, both inside and out. Believing he’s too damaged to be the father his son deserves, he leaves him with his sister and takes on a job as a farmhand, far away from the city and his failures.
Poppy, battling the elements and the heartache caused by her husband’s secret, finds the new farmhand is never far from her thoughts, and JB’s world is thrown into disarray by one of the most beautiful and capable women he has ever met. Neither can fight the surge of attraction they both feel.
In a small town where gossip reigns, will they surrender to duty or follow their hearts?
‘You’ll be cheering for this wartime Australian heroine well before the last page as she fights to find her voice, her feet and love after heartbreak. Nancy Cunningham’s emotional debut novel is a cracker.’ —Bestselling Australian author Victoria Purman.
‘Crossing the Bridge’ is available as an eBook through the Harper Collins/Escape website and all good online stores: https://www.amazon.com.au/s?k=9781867299738&camp=247…
https://play.google.com/store/search?q=9781867299738…
https://books.apple.com/…/crossing-the-bridge/id6458265282
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/crossing-the-bridge-9
An early Christmas present for yourself or someone you know perhaps?
I was fortunate enough to receive an Advance Reader Copy through Net Galley ( you can see my review on Good Reads) and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
Nancy will be in conversation with Victoria Purman on Sunday the 21st of January at Payneham Library and celebrating Crossing the Bridge with a CWA-style afternoon tea. You will need to book your place
What drew you to this topic, why did you want to tell this story?
When I wrote the first draft of Crossing the Bridge, I happened to be reading a lot of historical fiction stories but was surprised to find that there weren’t a lot of 20th Century historical Australian stories on the shelf, and I wanted to write that story – basically, I wrote the story for me!
Are you writing anything else?
I have lots and lots of story ideas and currently have around 5 unpublished manuscripts, one I have out on submission, and the other I am polishing as just last week I had a request for a full manuscript and will also send it to my current publisher (Harper Collins) the other 3 are sitting waiting in a bottom drawer somewhere! I have too many ideas and too little time.
About Nancy
I am in awe of Nancy who works as a scientist- (please tell me your proper scientific title!) and also writes romance. That is quite a leap from the logical analytical part of the brain to the emotional, feeling part of the brain. Does it ever cause problems or confusion?
For me anyway. I find I can compartmentalise the different aspects of both being a research scientist and a romance writer and I rarely get confused between the two. I work as a senior (insect researcher) and am involved in entomological-related projects. As part of my role, I also curate the Waite Insect and Nematode Collection – a large collection of insects and arthropods – many specimens date back over one hundred years! Being the collection manager, it appeals both to my scientific curiosity but also the historical aspect of the collection is fascinating!
Nancy also contributes insightful and supportive comments to the Romance Writers of Australia Aspiring Writers Group.
Some quick-fire questions.
Late nights or early mornings?
Early mornings/mornings I find are when I am at my brightest. Night times are usually a little fraught as I am usually pretty tired and sometimes exhausted. It’s often the time I spend relaxing with my family.
What’s for breakfast?
I like to vary it, Weet-bix/muesli/porridge sometimes toast or a poached egg, I occasionally have fruit smoothies!
Night out or Netflix?
I’m definitely a homebody but not opposed to the occasional evening out.
G &T or Tea/Coffee?
Tea and coffee every day, G and T for those days you come home and its hot and you want to chill.
Perfect weekend?
Saturday – A little sleep-in followed by brunch out, come home, relax in the garden, or read. Yummy dinner, either home-cooked or takeaway, Sunday – rinse and repeat!
What did you want to be when you grew up?
I wanted to be a zoologist, but also a scriptwriter (for the movies!)
What is for dinner tonight? Can you cook? What would you rather be eating?
Tonight, it’s an easy stir fry with beef, veggies, and noodles (probably teriyaki). I can cook but find during the week especially I prefer really easy to prepare dishes. I think I feel like pasta tonight!
What brings you joy? Lifts your spirits, and chases away a down mood.
I have a relatively sedentary role both at work and as a writer, so I like going for a walk every day – usually with my dog and sometimes my daughter comes too. I love time just to relax and unwind either with family or friends but also, I love time alone just reading a book or occasionally going out and having a massage (there’s a place in every shopping centre these days!)
Your hero?
My partner – he really grounds me and makes me laugh! I am definitely richer for having him in my life.
If you could choose three people (living or dead) to invite to a dinner party, who would they be and why?
Marie Curie – a ground-breaking female scientist – I’d like to know what motivated her to continue when she had so many setbacks. Agatha Christie – because she writes the most wonderful murder mysteries where she hides everything you need to know in plain sight! David Attenborough – because he is utterly awesome and I’m sure we could discuss anything and everything!
Do you have any non-writing-related interests?
I like to draw, have made wooden furniture and like doing graphic design stuff (including making book covers!)
What would surprise people to know about you?
I love playing video games (usually with female protagonists in story-rich games) and have written many words of fanfiction (before I decided maybe to give this original fiction author business a go!)
Life lessons-what do you wish you’d known earlier?
That it’s okay to fail because what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger!
Questions about Writing.
What is your writing process like?
I like to plan my first draft – I often spend a lot of time thinking about it before I’ve written a single word. Then I plan roughly each scene/chapter indicating beats – I like to use beat sheets and I write a rough GMC for each chapter. Then with my first draft, I read my GMC for that chapter and go for it. The first draft is very ugly – lots of grammar and spelling errors and I often have to do more research. 2nd draft is a tidy-up and to check structure, 3rd and 4th drafts are polishing and prepping for submission.
Do you have any other projects in the works?
I am currently working on another 1st draft which is a follow-up/sequel to Crossing the Bridge and will feature characters Ronnie (Veronica) and Charlie, set post WW2- fashion, wine, a little bit of espionage and a whole lot of love! I am also tinkering on a novella.
Have you ever resuscitated a project you’d shelved? What helped it work better the second time around?
I wrote a short story that failed miserably in a competition – some of the judge’s comments were odd and not really helpful (they didn’t like WW1 stories so marked me down) I shelved it and then about a year later Clare Griffin asked if I’d like to contribute with her and two other writers, Ava January and Sarah Fiddelaers, to a self-published anthology – 20th Century Historical Romance with an Easter theme.
I resuscitated/rewrote it into a longer story and I am very proud of that contribution! Clare, Ava, Sarah and I went on to do another anthology, this one based around a store in Paris, through the seasons and through four different time periods. We’ve been trying to organise a fourth but we’ve all been so busy!
What writing resources have been most helpful to you?
Scrivener is a fantastic tool and I love ‘One Stop for Writers’ which is the online version for all the thesaurus that Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi have produced (‘The Emotion Thesaurus’) I’ve also found the many writing groups on Facebook a font of knowledge for writing-related questions.
What do you know now that you wish you’d known at the beginning of your writing/publishing journey?
Do not ever compare your journey to others – you will only find discontentment!
What is your work schedule like when you’re writing?
I like to write my first drafts in a very short amount of time (National Novel Writing Month is good for that!) then I edit and edit and edit and edit.
What inspired your new book?
I knew when I wrote Crossing the Bridge that my side character of Veronica Guilford was a fab character, in fact, she was one of 3 POVs (Point of View)in the original story! She had to have her moment in the sun – and now it’s time!
What is the most difficult part about writing for you?
I think getting the structure and beats right. If you miss those there is often something off about the story. Also, your main character’s goal motivation and conflict has to be rock solid. Sometimes that needs work!
Did you do any research for your current book?
I write historical so there is always the need for research! Today I was looking up Australian female jazz musicians who worked in bands in the 1940s and 50s!
Do you have a favourite character that you have written? If so, who? And what makes them so special?
That’s like asking me who my favourite child is (I only have one child so that’s kind of given she’s my favourite) but I love all my characters in different ways. Poppy and Ronnie from Crossing the Bridge I have a great fondness for. I love Poppy because the way I initially wrote her she didn’t have a great character arc (it was pretty flat, and she didn’t have a lot of agency) – I worked hard on her to make her all the things a reader would like without compromising what I loved about her. Ronnie is my sassy character and I have to say I love writing how rude and loud she is! I really loved writing from a male perspective too– and JB was a lot of fun to explore!
Do you think someone could be a writer if they don’t feel emotions?
Not necessarily – I did Becca Symes’s Strength for Writers’ workshops and discovered that my top five strengths are empathy, harmony, positivity, adaptability and woo (working others out). Most of these are in the relationship-building area not the areas that are supposedly related to writers – but the empathy one I had a real revelation as Becca said in the workshop that people with high empathy often have difficulty getting emotion onto the page. Which seems at odds with the very thing being experienced. The reality is that people with high empathy are so caught up in feeling the emotion they are writing – they think it’s been translated to the page when it’s not– learning to translate that to the page is a technical skill that must be learned. How many times has an editor or beta reader said to me when reading my work ‘Nancy, tell me how she feels!!!’
Best writing advice/ Worst writing advice you ever received?
Best – At my very first Romance Writers of Australia conference I was walking to the venue and I met this lovely lady on the street going to the conference. We talked about writing and romance, but it wasn’t until we got to the venue that I realised that it was the late great Valerie Parv, I was gobsmacked, and she wrote about our meeting in her memoir how for a moment we were just two writers talking – Valerie always said that perseverance for a writer is key. Finish that manuscript. Get a rejection? Submit again. Not getting traction? Keep writing, write another manuscript, then another and another. Keep learning, keep writing, keep submitting, it’s a long game and you must have the stamina to keep going if you are to be a success. For me, I like to think it’s a ‘when’ not an ‘if’.
Worst – you have to write every day. Working full time and having a family and other commitments makes it physically, intellectually, and emotionally impossible to write some days. To write you don’t need to flog yourself! A little bit each day goes a long way.
Best money you have spent as a writer?
Joining the Romance Writers of Australia.
Do you have a favourite author and why?
I absolutely love Beatriz Williams novels – honestly, every book she writes is like a dagger through your heart – the story, the characters, the settings, the beautiful writing. I read her work and think I will never ever be that good. She’s amazing!
What are you reading now?
I’m a multitasker – I usually have a few on the go – an audiobook for my commute to work- After the Forest by Kell Woods and I have just received ‘A Country Vet Christmas’ by Lily Malone, Alissa Callen, Penelope Janu, Stella Quinn and Pamela Cook
What books or authors have most influenced your writing?
Beatriz Williams, Amy Harmon, Victoria Purman, Penelope Janu, Soraya Lane
Favourite quote (does not matter the source)
“We’ve got to live, no matter how many skies have fallen.” D.H. Lawrence.
Favourite book/story you have read as an adult?
It’s gritty but I cannot go past Richard Flanagan’s The Narrow Road to the Deep North. I read it several years ago but there are still bits I think about that move me to tears. It was a book that touched my soul.
Favourite book/story you have read as a child?
Enid Blyton’s Magic Faraway Tree books were favourites of mine growing up!
Nancy Cunningham is a historical romance writer from Adelaide, with several award-winning short fiction and unpublished manuscript excerpts under her belt. When not working in her role as an entomologist, looking after family, reading, watching too many historical dramas and spider wrangling, Nancy writes about spirited and stoic heroines of the past overcoming adversity.
You can find Nancy at:
https://www.instagram.com/nan_writes
https://www.facebook.com/NancyMCunningham197
Thank you so much for spending time with us Nancy and best wishes for your book’s success.
Sonia Bellhouse- Author. 